Lawyer behind AI psychosis cases warns of mass casualty risks

TechCrunch | 14.03.2026 07:01
In the lead up to the Tumbler Ridge school shooting in Canada last month, 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar spoke to ChatGPT about her feelings of isolation and an increasing obsession with violence, according to court filings. The chatbot allegedly validated Van Rootselaar’s feelings and then helped her plan her attack, telling her which weapons to use and sharing precedents from other mass casualty events, per the filings. She went on to kill her mother, her 11-year-old brother, five students, and an education assistant, before turning the gun on herself.